ABC won't let facts get in the way of a good rant

BEFORE the federal election, both "our" ABC and its ideologically-paired print partner, Fairfax Media, announced they would each launch independent fact checking units to sort out claims made by politicians.

BEFORE the federal election, both "our" ABC and its ideologically-paired print partner, Fairfax Media, announced they would each launch independent fact checking units to sort out claims made by politicians. It is a pity that neither applied their skewed examinations to the laughable assertions routinely published by their own organisations as either news or comment. The ABC received a $10 million handout from the Gillard government to establish its unit last February - not so much a fact check but a fat cheque - on top of its $1 billion plus taxpayer-funded budget. Fairfax linked with the US-based PolitiFact organisation, a body noted for its inconsistency, and has maintained that tradition here. The Fairfax fact checkers should have run their eyes over a recent article by former Fairfax journalist Anne Summers, now feminist blogger and acolyte/handmaiden to Julia Gillard, the first woman to oust a popularly-elected Labor Prime Minister and later to head a minority Labor/Green/Independent government. In her venom-drenched commentary, Summers segued from musing upon the possibility of radical changes to the Roman Catholic Church under Pope Francis (extremely unlikely) to devote herself to a constant theme among feminists, baseless attacks on Cardinal George Pell and Prime Minister Tony Abbott. Summers is among those one could easily imagine ululating with hysterical joy when Gillard delivered her bizarre accusatory misogyny assault on Abbott last year after revelations of the particularly unsavoury references made by Speaker Peter Slipper (her choice) to parts of the female anatomy were publicly aired. For Summers and others in Gillard's deluded coven of supporters, Gillard's absolutely unsubstantiated misogyny address trumped Slipper's fully authenticated remarks. Just as groundless as Gillard's shrill comments were claims made Summers that Abbott's idea of lending a hand to illegal arrivals "evidently does not extend to providing adequate medical assistance for Australia's asylum seekers, or even basic shelter on Nauru or Manus Island". Such a bald statement begs checking, but not apparently by Fairfax. As it was published just after a highly-publicised visit to Nauru by Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, deputy Opposition leader Tanya Plibersek and the controversially-appointed Ambassador for Women and Girls, Natasha Stott Despoja, it is worth looking at exactly what health care is provided on Nauru not what Summers claims is the case. First, the federal government has a duty of care to ensure the health and welfare of people in immigration detention and this has not changed since the Coalition came to office. Health services for people in immigration detention are provided by the department's contracted health services provider, International Health and Medical Services (IHMS) which delivers on-site emergency, primary and mental health care. It has been the policy of successive governments that people in immigration detention receive health care, as recommended by health professionals, at a level comparable to that available to the broader Australian community. This has not changed. Work is under way to expand accommodation at both Nauru and Manus Island OPCs, including the erection of marquees and building of permanent structures. At Nauru, all marquees are fitted with fixed ceiling fans and domestic style pedestal type fans that can be moved around. There is running water where required such as toilets/showers/laundries etc. The families are living in marquees in individual sleeping areas, not tents. As Bishop said on her return from Nauru, conditions at the processing centre are better than those at most Australian mining camps. As Plibersek observed, stating the obvious: "Nauru is a very small island. It's got a regular population of around 10,000. It's hot, it's quite dry ... it's not an easy environment to live in for the Nauruans themselves. So I'd say the conditions for the detainees would be similar to the conditions for the Nauruans. But of course they don't have the same freedom of movement." Very different from Summers' ill-informed view, but then she made her comments without visiting the island. Summers also overlooked another important fact that some might consider worth mentioning in any discussion of border policy programs - it was Labor which restarted offshore processing on Nauru and Manus Island. It had to because it had wilfully dismantled the Howard government's extraordinarily successful policy which stopped the boats and stopped the drownings and yet unleashed an unwarranted torrent of abuse from Labor supporters. Those are the facts.